


Hold me accountable ( I won't blame you)

by imaganator4ever



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Billy's Mom - Freeform, Boys Kissing, Enemies to Lovers, Fighting, Heavy Swearing, Homophobic Language, Hurt/Comfort, Im so sad poor billy boi, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, M/M, Minor Character Death, Rough Kissing, Steve is a selfless asshole, Violence, cleidocranial dysplasia, mentions of child abuse, panic/ anxiety attacks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-14
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-06-27 11:16:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15684330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaganator4ever/pseuds/imaganator4ever
Summary: It wasnt like Billy wanted this shitty life in this shitty town. People take out their anger on the wrong people all the time and Clearly, Billy wasn’t above that.





	1. chapter 1

Billy walked out of his house, ripping his jacket off the couch on his way and wrestling his arms into it. He opened the door only to be assaulted by the God-awful icy fucking weather of Hawkins, Indiana. 

He hated this town. He hated his ‘family’. He hated the weather. But above all, he hated the people who chose to take residence in this shithole. Fuck them all. 

He couldn’t wait to go back to California, where there were girls for cows, Sun for the gloomy sky, heat for the cold. 

He got into his car and turned off the air conditioning that blasted into the car. He was gonna fucking kill the redheaded little bitch for messing with his car. 

He drove to the arcade, the car’s wheels slipping ever so slightly on the ice that has formed on the streets, but that didn't stop him from releasing the brakes and pressing on the gas pedal harder. 

Once he arrived at the arcade's driveway he honked loudly and repeatedly to portray his thining-by-the-second-patience and waited while he lit his fifth cigarette within the 10 minute time frame it took him to get to the arcade, inhaling and exhaling the smoke religiously. 

Honking on the car again he growled out in frustration and got out of the car, pushing his way through the layer of snow and banging the door on the wall on his way into the facility only to find none other than Steve Harrington all up in his face.

“Hargrove” said Steve, lifting his chin up to show defiance. 

Billy unfurrowed his eyebrows and tilted his mouth into a smirk before saying “Princess”

He might’ve missed the tick in Steve’s jaw if he weren’t paying attention, but he was, this whole fiasco is for the sole purpose of the reaction he’s gonna get out of Harrington this time around. 

“To what do I not owe the pleasure of seeing you here?” Steve gritted out, seeming to know this was all Billy’s show of posturing. 

“How about you tell me? Since you’re the one who seems to be breathing down that little bitch and the shitheads' necks all the Goddamn time” Billy inquired, keeping his stance relaxed and open although his shoulders were strung tight with anxiety about his asshole of a father’s reaction about being late once more. 

Respect and responsibility seemingly floating around in the back of his head. 

“Well you’re the one who dropped her off here, where else would she go?” 

Steve knew he was playing with fire, as much as he didn't like to admit it he saw the furrow of Hargrove's eyebrows and the way his shoulders hitched up with stress, the same way his' would look like after waking up from a nightmare. 

Billy grabbed Steve by the flap of his jacket and pulled him closer, he bent his neck down into his ear and breathed out the words,

“Either you tell me right now where she is or I'll beat it out of you, I didn't have a problem last time and I won't this time” 

Steve remembers That Night, with a capital T, like it happened yesterday and gave a full-body shudder that he tried to imagine Hargrove didn't feel. 

Steve caught the hand on his jacket and ripped it away, knowing the friction hurt like a bitch and pushed Billy, putting a healthy distance between them that didn't have him at a high risk of heart problems. 

“She’s in the back you asshole” Steve huffed out, his heart beating a mile a minute and his fist clenching tightly. Personally, he liked to think the cold air got him shuddering and huffing like that, it kept him at an arm’s distance of dangerous thoughts he should not have. 

“Now that wasn't so hard, princess” Billy tsked as he waltzed into the back room of the arcade, only to come back with a handful of a pissed off redhead.

“Good Bye, Harrington” Billy drawled, his voice dropping an octave and his smirk coming back as he dragged his protesting step-sister behind him. Steve frowned and waved at Max, smiling slightly only to get the pissed off face and a grunt of acknowledgment. 

Billy shoved max into the passenger’s seat and went around the car, getting into the driver's seat. He switched the car back on and while he waited for the engine to heat up he glanced out of the window to see Harrington standing outside the arcade with his arms folded in front of him and his face set into a frown, staring into empty space which happened to be Billy’s face. 

Before Billy peeled out of the arcade’s driveway he huffed and winked at Harrington, which clearly got him out of his trance and his face morphed into that of horror and disgust before he glared at Billy. 

He steered the car out onto the road and floored the gas pedal, uncaring to the night quickly approaching, which gave unaware little shits an opportunity to get their asses hit by a fucking car, and worrying more about his fate that's about to come to him in the shape of his father's fist, pummeling his face into the wooden floor of the living room. His beating was long overdue, and tonight seems like the perfect night for his father to beat his shit out of him, he could feel it in his gut.

Billy drove like a maniac, he imagined that Max was aware, turned too fast and stopped abruptly which would’ve sent anyone into the dashboard if they didn’t have their seatbelts on. However, Max was a smart little shit and years of bruised jaws got her fastening her seatbelt the second she got into any car, not just Billy’s car, which got him pleased because at least he didn't have his old man hollering at him about his little sister (she was not his sister even if it killed him) endangering herself because Billy didn't teach her to click in the anti-death contraption. 

There was a method to the madness, after all.

When they arrived, Billy stayed in the car and smoked the rest of his cigarette before throwing the butt out of the window. He held the smoke in his lungs to the point where he saw dots in his vision before releasing it into the cramped atmosphere of the car. 

When he looked over to Max, she was glaring at a lamp post like she wanted to set it on fire, and hey, that wasn’t such a bad idea. He was about to freeze his ass off. 

He got out of the car and slammed the door behind him, only to bark at max “Stop slamming that door, dipshit. You wanna slam doors how about you get your own car.” 

She turned to him, eyes full of fire, her stance aggressive, her lips set in a line like she wanted to say some stupid shit she was gonna regret. 

But he was never gonna know, she just rolled her eyes and stomped back to the house. 

Billy exhaled harshly, the winter freezing his blood within the second. But truth be told he would rather die of hypothermia than die at the hands of his own father. At least his death won't be a fucking sob story for people to take advantage of. If they wanted to mourn, they should’ve mourned the death of his childhood the second his father set foot in the house after his mother left them. 

After all, it was kinda hard to forget your father blaming you for your mother’s death, he acted like billy knew the cure for her disease and refused to share it with the fucking class. He knew it wasn't his fault, didn't matter because he still suffered from broken ribs and a black eye that lasted for weeks on end. 

Billy sniffled, the cold getting to him, and walked back to the house, his shoulders hunched together to try and keep some fucking warmth for himself, his hands in his pockets because God knows his fingers would fall apart. 

He walked into the house and intended to beeline into his room, but he never got past the living room before white-hot pain spread through his head from his scalp, knocking him onto his ass and when he came to' he realized his father had him by the hair. 

“What did we talk about Billy?” His father said next to his face, his breath reeking of alcohol.

It was a script he knew he had to abide by if he wanted to come out of this alive, he was starting to think he didn't want that anymore. 

“Respect and responsibility, sir” Billy spat out, leaning his head back to try and lessen the pain, but his father just pulled harder so he gave up the effort.

“And does bringing your sister 10 minutes after her curfew seem like respect and responsibility to you, son?” He spat out, his voice laced with venom.

He had to add son, like it didn't stoke the fire growing in him, like it didn't slash at the open wound he was hiding in a corner and licking at, trying to heal it, so he could be cold, uncaring, full of spite and hate, through and through. 

“I apolo-UGH” Billy was cut off with his dad pulling at his hair so hard he was thrown to the ground, landing o his back, his breath punched out of him and he saw spots dancing in his vision.

“I don't need your apology, boy” His father next spat to him, 

“What I need you to do is to answer my question”  
He raised his boot and pressed at the healing rib he broke 3 weeks ago, he punched blindly, but he sure knew where he did the most damage. 

“Now, boy, what is respect and responsibility? You seem to know a hell lot about repeating it like a fucking parrot” His father pressed harder into his rib, and Billy tried, he really did, but he couldn't help but gasp at the excruciating pain he felt. 

“I need to respect my parents, I need to be responsible to maxi- my little sister, and I need to have respect for myself” He wasn't kidding when he said it was a script. 

His dad took off his boot and before Billy could even sigh in relief he was back onto his knees with his father pulling him up by his hair, 

“You forgot one thi-“ He was cut off by pounding at the door that sounded like the person was trying to knock the door off its hinges. 

“You’re a lucky one arent you” His dad snickered, then pushed him so he landed at his feet, splayed on the ground, breathing harshly. 

“Who are you, young man? And what is it that you want?” He heard his dad say.

"I'm so sorry to disturb you at such a late time, my name is Steve Harrington and I'm -uh my friend Billy, he lives here I believe" 

Fuck. FuckFuckFuckFuck. What the hell was Harrington doing here? Was he trying to get him killed? If Billy didn't play this right, he was sure his father would think that Billy is on some other queer escapade and this is his knight in fucking shining armor. He was gonna kill Harrington.

"Boy, Your friend here is askin' for you, now why don't you be a man and take up your matters into your own hands, or do you still want your old man to fend for you?" His father grit out, he was pissed off, actually no, he was more than pissed off. He was having his beat-on-your-kid day, which seemed to be occurring quite often, and this preppy rich boy knocks at his door dead in the middle of the night and asks for his son. Yeah, this definitely wasn't gonna end well for him or his face.

"No sir, respect and responsibility include handling your own maters, like a man" Billy said carefully before getting up and fixing his clothes, he was half inclined to fix his hair as well but that would look like trying too hard for a 'friend' so he just let it be.

Billy walked to the door, opening it to find Harrington stood on his porch in the same stance he saw him in last time he saw him, arms crossed with a frown on his face, and if he looked close enough he could see the beginnings of a pout on his pink lips.

Billy was no psychic but he felt this heading in a direction he wasn't sure he liked so much.


	2. Chapter 2

When Billy went to speak, Steve beat him to it

"Alright, before you beat me to a pulp let me explain" Steve said, raising his hands like he was calming a wild animal, which was not true, Billy can be in control of his emotions if he wanted to [author speaking author speaking, billy ur a lying bitch and we all know it so don't even try me right now]

Billy clenched his jaw, not knowing whether to give Steve a chance or to tell him to fuck off, so he can go back in the house and get his fated beating.

The former seemed more appealing to his still healing body, so he nodded and lifted his eyebrows momentarily, urging Steve to explain.

"Alright well, remember like half an hour ago when you came to pick up your sister? Well not even five minutes after you guys left, Dustin's mother called me, wait you know Dustin right?"

Before Billy could even open his mouth, Steve continued talking,

"Anyways, she called and told me that Dustin went to the hospital because he fell while getting up the stairs and he hit his head, so he had to be brought to the hospital, and I know a fall doesn't seem serious but because of his condition, cleidocranial dysplasia, oh my God I can't believe I just spelled that right, his skull is more fragile than a norm- "

"Jesus Harrington, you're gonna fucking pass out on me if you don't stop talking" Billy exclaimed, his annoyance lacing his 'concern' if that's what one could call it.

Steve took in a few deep breaths and when he went to continue talking, Billy raised his pointer finger, a sign for Steve which said to be quiet.

"Amigo, you're gonna have to tell me why you're here without twisting and turning twenty thousand times because if I'm being honest, I don't give a shit about your buddy, you come banging at my door in the middle of the night, and my dad doesn't like unpronounced guests, neither do I, also I'm not too keen on freezing my ass off in your town's shitty weather, so spit it out"

Billy crossed his arms waiting for the second explanation of the night.

Steve sighed tiredly and only then did Billy see the discoloration under his eyes that suggested he didn't sleep the night before or any other night for the past freakin' month.

"Well, I was wondering if you could take Max to the hospital? I still didn't get to see him but his mom told me that his condition is critical and a fall like that is very dangerous, almost fatal if he's unlucky." Steve looked at Billy through his eyelashes and Billy had to admit, dark circles or not, he was fucking beautiful.

Billy felt panic rising in his chest, almost choking him. He turned away from Steve, walking in the direction of his house. He would take any beating over whatever it is that he's feeling right now.

"Pretty boy, just like you said he's in a fucking emergency room at the moment, they're not gonna let any of you in so you're just wasting your time here, go home" Billy could feel his legs getting lighter and his hands were tingling at the lack of oxygen. If Billy knew anything like the back of his hand, it was a panic attack and those were signs of one coming up.

Billy stepped onto his porch, proving that they moved further away from the house during their conversation, and went to open his door but he was stopped by Steve's voice, filled with desperation.

"William, please"

That sure froze Billy on his porch, he turned around to face Steve and was pretty sure his horror was displayed on his face. No one had called him that except for his mother, last time was while she was on her death bead, pressing the necklace he wore on his neck like it was a part of him, into his palm and making him promise her to take care of himself.

_William, promise mama that you're gonna be a good boy and take care of yourself_

He turned back around and entered his house, ignoring his father attempting to get him to talk and walked towards Max's room, who was sitting on her bed and told her to get ready. She followed him out of her room, asking him what's wrong, but he just ignored her and walked back to the living room, explaining to his father that they needed to visit Max's friend who had an accident. That got Max bouncing back in her room and getting ready faster than lightning.

Susan put her hand on his father's arm when he went to protest, and when he turned to her she smiled at him and told him to allow them and of course his father was a sucker to a pretty face, so he told Billy to watch out for his sister and to call him if anything went wrong.

Like he gave a shit, which he didn't.

He opened the door to find Steve still standing next to the fence around their house, hugging himself to try and keep warm, and when he saw Billy he raised his head out of the cocoon he made for himself and his face lit in hope, which didn't stay on for long, as Billy stomped to where he was standing and held Steve's arm in a death grip

"Listen, Harrington, you want something you ask for it, I might agree and I might disagree and you fucking respect that. I'm agreeing right now, not because of you or your friend or Max, I'm agreeing because I don't want shit from my old man if something happens to Max's friend, and I'm not gonna make too much of a fuss, but you call me that again and you bet your ass I'll make sure you never see the light of day ever again, your old beating is gonna pale next to the one I'll give you if you repeat that, capiche?"

Billy was livid, he could barely see straight, but the sorrow that came with the memory of his mother stopped him from beating this kid to a pulp. All he said was a lie, he was doing this for his mother because he knew she would want him to care.

Steve, on the other hand, was close to tears, his arm was surely gonna get a nice bruise on it and his panic for his friend was clouding his judgment of appropriate places and situations to cry. He whimpered when Billy wouldn't let go of his arm after his little speech.

"Alright alright let go of me," Steve said, but Billy was too deep in his thoughts to hear Steve, he was too deep in his thoughts to see the panic displayed on Steve's face.

He broke out of it when Steve put a hand on his bare chest and pushed him back the same way he did That Night. He let go of Steve's arm and walked back to his car, opening the door and slamming it after he got in. He honked for Max who came out of the house only seconds later, shoving herself in the passenger's seat.

Steve walked back to his car as well, rubbing at the spot Billy grabbed him by, and got into his car, thankful for the heat, and turned on the car, steering it onto the direction of the hospital Dustin's mom told him he was in, with Billy tagging along only moments later after he got out of the parking space in front of his house.

When they got to the hospital, Max dashed out of the car into the hospital's reception, asking for one Dustin Henderson before Dustin's mother walked out of one of the hallways and hugged Max then crouched down and spoke to her a few words which got Max wiping at her eyes, and from where Billy was watching in his car he could tell that she was crying.

Ms. Henderson then stood straight and cradled Max by her shoulders, leading her to the hallway she walked out from. Billy was broken from his trance when someone knocked at his window and when he looked to see who it is, of course, it was Steve, with a worried look on his face.

Billy rolled down his window, raising his eyebrows in question when Steve didn't say anything right away.

"What?" Billy grit out, huffing harshly, his father's previous abuse to his rib getting to him, and stared at Steve.

"You gonna say something, princess? Jesus, there I got that little bitch to her friend, You gonna leave me alone now? or are you gonna keep saying stupid shit that gets you death threats left and right? Hmm"

Steve opened his mouth, His lips forming imaginary words before he stood up straight and said " Come in, I don't want Max to come back to her brother as an icicle"

Billy clenched his jaw, not liking the fact that he was getting orders from the guy he literally just threatened. This guy had a fucking death wish and he clearly wasn't afraid to show that off.

His fearlessness drew Billy to him even more and Billy didn't like that. Not one mother fucking bit.

Steve looked down at Billy, his jaw working like he wanted to say something but he just walked to the hospital, going in the same direction Max and Ms. Henderson went in just minutes ago after he entered the hospital.

Billy stayed in his car, chain smoking the pack he had in his pocket, before throwing it out the window and sitting back, letting some of the tension stored in his shoulders ease, not having to face his father this night sure did soothe his anxiety.

He got out of his car when Steve went back to the reception, his hands in his pockets as he stared at Billy's car, urging Billy to come into the hospital with just his eyes, which clearly worked because Billy was walking to the hospital before he realized it.

He didn't like how responsive he is to Steve. This spelled trouble in 50 different languages.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whatsup crunchy bois,  
> listen imma be honest and say that im not a doctor, i know, shocker, who would've guessed. certainly not me. anyways any info i got on baby dustin's condition is from the internet and a few books for reference so yea. please if anyone can add to my dumbass info about the condition and uk better (which can literally be anyone) lmk in the comments. 
> 
> oh and thanks for the kudos, i mean idk why anyone would read that first chapter tho. but like fr it means alot when someone even opens it to read it. anyways yea, billy's got some homosexual feels going on and his attacc mode was on while steve was all about the protecc, but we can appreciate some emotionally confused bois anyways,,
> 
> have a good day, crunchy bois


	3. chapter 3

Billy was happily laid out on the floor of the waiting room, his hands crossed behind his head. He liked to imagine he wasn't in this shitty hospital under those shitty fluorescent lights but instead was in california under the burning sun and sand giving under his feet.

His thoughts were interrupted when an object covered the light hitting the back of his closed eyes, making a shadow over him.

Billy opened one of his eyes and found Steve crouched down next to him, too close for comfort he might add. He stared a little, his eyes scanning the way Steve's usually perfectly quaffed hair, now falling into his eyes, made him impossibly attractive. Billy pushed down the thoughts and closed his eye again hoping Steve would get the memo to fuck off.

"Listen if you want you can sit in my place, your place on the floor doesn't seem too comfortable, I'm gonna go get some coffee and check with Ms. Henderson to see if there's any improvement," Steve said, surprising Billy at the offer of taking his seat. To compensate for his surprise, he decided to tease Steve a bit so Billy won't think too much of the offer than what it was.

He reopened both eyes this time, then tilted his head and smirked

"What? you worried about me, princess?" Billy said

Steve rolled his eyes expecting Billy's answer, then stood up straight and headed for the elevator, and waited for it to come. When he looked back into the waiting room he saw Billy, still laying down in the same spot and Max sitting on the chairs provided, talking or actually, not talking, more like bickering with Max, and if one were to squint they almost looked like real siblings with how they were arguing.

When the elevator dinged announcing its arrival, Steve turned back and stepped into it then pressed the floor which had the cafeteria. His mind wandered, thinking about Dustin, then thinking about the kids who were devastated to know that their parents didn't want them to go out so late in the night and that they would visit their friend in the morning. Which brought Steve to the next thought, Why was the first person he thought of was Billy after ending his phone call on the arcade's shitty payphone. If Steve was being honest with himself he didn't know why, if he weren't so distressed he would've thought it through more clearly but he didn't, he just thought of the last person he saw and his mind went to autopilot from then on -driving him to Billy's house and asking him to take Max to the hospital which now thinking about it was batshit crazy because, looking at Billy's history wiht him, this could've gone south faster than Steve could blink. 

When the elevator took him to his floor, he went to the cafeteria and bought two coffees because he knew Billy wouldn't ask for anything even if it killed him, then bought three bottles of apple juice, because who the fuck doesn't like apple juice, and got a few snacks because looking at the time it's probably been three hours since they'be been here and personally, he was starving and he bet the asshole aswell as Max were too. 

Then he went to the floor with the operations rooms and found Dustin's mom sitting down on a chair one of the nurses offered after she refused to leave the floor. From his limited knowledge about hospitals, he knew this wasn't allowed but Dustin's mom put a strong front that said 

_You can drag my dead body away from here, I'm not going anywhere_

"Hey" Steve said once he reached where she was sitting. When Dustin's mom looked at him he offered a soft smile, "How are you?" Steve asked, as much as he was worried about his friend he needed to make sure she was okay.

Instead, she chose to ignore the question and said "They said that he fell hard on his head, causing a whole lot of damage to his skull which is why it's taking so much time"

"Ms. Hendrson, I know I couldn't possibly imagine what you're feeling right now but I just wanna tell you that Dust is a strong boy, he's gonna pull through, I can feel it," Steve said, but they both knew the reality of the situation. Dustin had as much of a chance to survive as he did to not, however, the little bit of the comfort the words gave was better than nothing.

She looked up at him and smiled then said "Thank you, Steve, really you've been such a great role model to Dustin, better than his dad ever was to him. I owe you."

"Please don't say that, you know I love Dustin like a little brother and I would do almost anything for him." He said, then offered one last smile before turning away and heading to the elevator.

He got back to the floor that has the waiting room and passed by Billy, placing the coffee next to his body and dropped the juice and some of the snacks on his chest which caused Billy to glare at him and raise the middle finger then drop the food on the floor and to turn on his side, pretending to sleep. 

Billy couldn't believe Steve got him food, was the guy trying to get punched in the face? for fuck's sake. It wasn't like Billy was gonna hit him because he got him food but looking at their track record together it was more likely that it seemed. He heard the noisy plastic and rolled his eyes, ofcourse Steve and his fucking bleeding heart would worry about the guy who beat his face unrecognizable, and would get him _food_ of all things. 

The rustle of plastic and chewing sounds along with Billy's rough breathing, courtesy of Neil Hargrove, filled the otherwise silent room. He flinched when one of the nurses bustled into the room and asked for him, telling him he was needed on the phone. He got up and dusted himself off, doing his best to not take too long because, come on, if he was being realistic who the hell would call for him, other than his piece of shit dad?

He looked back and saw Steve staring at him, his eyebrows pulled together and his food put down, siting on the edge of his seat like he knew exactly who was asking for Billy, and what kind of verbal abuse he was about to go through.

"Take it easy, pretty boy. I won't be gone for long so don't miss me" 

"In your dreams, Hargrove" Steve said, then leaned back in his chair but his shoulders didn't lose the visible tightness in them. Billy didn't answer and turned around, walking out of the room faking nonchalance when in reality he was halfway on the road to a nice and long anxiety attack.

He took the phone from a nurse and put the receiver on his ear. 

"Billy Hargrove speaking" 

"Why didn't you tell me where the hell you and your sister were going?" He heard. It was his father. Wow what an unexpected turn of events. Not.

Was this man out of his motherfucking mind? He TOLD him to LEAVE and TAKE his sister to the HOSPITAL.

"Boy why the hell aren't you answering? Susan and I were worried sick, calling up every hospital in the goddamn town"

Which, okay that was on Billy, he should’ve expected his dad to look for something to use as an excuse to beat his ass up, but there was a grand total of three fucking hospitals in the town, one of them being a veterinary, so that wasn't even cosidered a hospital, so his choices would be narrowed down to two. fucking. hospitals.

"Sir I thought you knew since we-"

"Boy, I don't give a shit what you think, you should've told me where you were going and now you're gonna regret acting like a fucking irresponsible child"

The call was cut off at that, leaving Billy gripping the phone so tight in his hand he thought it might break under the pressure. He gave the nurse the receiver and turned around, heading for the washroom. He can't handle Steve and his worried face and Max and her pitying looks.

He got to the washroom and turned the tap then washed his face. He breathed in and out, trying to prevent himself from panicking. 

_I won't have no son having panic attacks like a little pussy, bad enough you like having a dick down your throat, fucking fag._

It was all Billy could remember, his mother's death, his father abusing him all the time, faceless people in his nightmares, taunting him and laughing at him, making fun of his pain and sorrow.

What Billy would give to forget.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whatsup bootyful ppl,  
> Help me lord this was a CHAPTER, i will admit its kinda hard to imagine what a complex character like billy is thinking so im just imagining it as we go  
> But like who tf cares, Jefree out there draggin some HOES THROUGH THE MUD  
> YOURE DOING AMAZING SWEETY 
> 
> On another note i wanna tell ya’ll that if you have any problems u dont know who to talk to im here, trust me when i say that talking to someone is easier than it seems. Ive been through it. And if talking to me is gonna help you then PLEASE dont hold back.i wont bite i promise ;) But if u cant talk to me then try talking to anyone. It will help more than you think it will 
> 
> I love ya’ll please stay safe
> 
> Bye bootyfuls :D


	4. Chapter 4

When Billy left the room to answer the call, Max went to sleep, her head resting on Steve's shoulder while he read one of the magazines the hospital offered,  

Truth be told, Steve wasn't concentrating on the fitness magazine he was holding at all. He was worried about Billy. As much as the guy was an asshole, he didn't deserve the abuse he got from his father. He once overheard the kids talking about it and at the time he shouted at them to stop shoving their noses in peoples business but from then on the topic wouldn't leave his mind. If he wasn't actively thinking about it, it was floating in the back of his head nagging at him to give it importance. However, he knew that if he brought it up to Billy, he would either get a nice black eye or a meticulously broken rib and he wasn't up for either.

He couldn't escape the topic but he also can't do anything about it so he chose to watch Billy from afar, he needed tangible evidence that his father beat on him. There was the option of school showers where he can see if Billy had any bruises, but the guy got in a fight every other day, however news around his school spread like wildfire, plus Billy really liked to showcase his handiwork on the guy he fought with and he doubted anyone could hit Billy hard enough to bruise him. Also, Steve stopped showering in the showers because everyone in there hated him and don't get him wrong, he hated everyone in there too. At least the feelings were mutual. 

His train of thought was cut off when Billy came back and sat on the floor, despite the many free chairs offered, and took out a cigarette, putting it in his mouth but not lighting it.

"What are you lookin at, Harrington?" Billy asked, his voice hoarse like he hadn’t used it in ages.

Which okay, God be his witness he hated when Billy gave him the stupid nicknames, but when he called him by his last name it meant Billy was more on the 'I will punch you in the face' side rather than the constant 'I will tease the everliving fuck out of you' side. Personally, he preferred the latter.

He chose to ignore Billy's question and said, "Who was it?" 

Billy flashed his startling blue eyes at Steve, rage swirling inside of him. He wanted to punch something or someone and it didn't really matter who, all he wanted was an outlet. However, Billy wanted to entertain Steve's ballsy curiosity.

"Mind your fucking business, princess" 

"Well you're not the only person who has their curiosities, if you can't answer my questions I won't answer yours" 

Clearly, The holy spirit of dumbass took over Steve's body, working his mouth over words he didn’t give the executive decision of approval, and was now asking for a fight with a not so friendly Billy Hargrove.

Billy clenched his jaw, Steve stoking the hot anger inside of him, his arms were tensing up the same way they did when he was about ready to pummel some douchebag's face in.

He ripped the unlit cigarette out of his mouth and turned to Steve, his nose flaring. Steve was testing his boundaries and he knew it. 

"It was my old man"

"What did he want?"

Steve almost slapped a hand over his mouth, the sleep deprivation clearly melted his brain to mouth filter.

Billy raised his eyebrows in surprise like he didn't expect Steve to keep the questions flowing.

"He was asking about where we were" Billy said

"Didn't you tell him you were going to a hospital?"

"I did, but not to which hospital"

Steve scoffed incredulously 

"We have, like, two hospitals in town, a bit excessive for such a small town, but they're only two. Didn't he call both to ask for you?"

"Pretty boy, what the fuck do you think he just did?"

Steve tilted his head, then opened his mouth then closed it, then opened it some more like he wanted to say something.

"Fair warning, Harrington. I'm not above beating you up in a hospital. So, measure your next words carefully"

Billy said then turned back to his previous position and shoved the cigarette in the crease above his ear.

Okay, we were back to Harrington. Clearly, Billy was in a very bad mood. 

Steve shut his mouth and leaned back in his seat, thinking about this. Okay so his father calls three hours after they left, asking where they were, and that's not supposed to be made a big deal, except Billy came back in a bad mood, so it was made a big deal.

So what? Their father was a control freak, still wasn't evidence that he beat his kid up.

Regardless, Steve saved that in his mental notebook. This wasn't good enough but with the right information, it could be useful. 

When he looked back at Billy he saw that he closed his eyes and was leaning his head on the wall behind him. He felt guilty that he dragged Max and her volatile brother to the hospital only to sit around and wait, but so far Max wasn't complaining and neither was Billy. So he had to milk it for what its worth, either until Dustin was out of surgery, or when Billy woke up with his mean face on and dragged Max back to their house.

He closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, Max's head still resting on him, and tried to sleep.

 

 

 

 

Steve woke up several hours later, only to find Billy and Max gone, It didn’t surprise him but it didnt hurt any less that he was left alone once again. 

He got up and stretched his back, then went to the reception desk and asked the nurse sitting there

"Hey, Dustin Henderson, is he out of the operations room yet?"

"Yeah, he's been out for a couple hours now"

A couple of hours? How long was Steve asleep for?

"Which room is he in?" 

"Its room 308"

Steve bid his thanks and headed to the elevator. 

When he reached the floor, the first thing he saw was Billy Hargrove in all his glory, leaning back on the wall with his hands in his pockets, in the most relaxed stance ever, hitting on the nurses as they came and go, the ones that seemed respondent to his unabashed behavior at least. Typical scene for Billy.

He walked over to where Billy was standing and leaned on the wall in front of him crossing his arms infront of him and said, 

"Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Looked too pretty sleeping, plus the little bitch said that you never sleep and that you needed it" 

God damn it Max, Steve thought as his face burned up in embarrassment. He wasn't the type of person to really express what he needed so to have Max say that got Steve squirming under Billy's calculating gaze.

"Yeah, thanks man" 

After countless minutes of awkward silence, Steve plunged his thumb behind him, gesturing for the room that had Dustin and said

"I'll go in and check on Dustin"

When he wwnt to move he found himself trapped under Billy's gaze like a deer caught in headlights, until a nurse passed by them and Billy broke the intense staring, only to look the nurse up and down then he looked back at Steve, his smirk so wide it showed his teeth, his tongue pushed from between his teeth swiping at his lips, and Steve, poor dumb Steve, followed the action with his eyes, then gulped loudly. Billy then winked at Steve and pushed himself off the wall and followed the nurse. 

Steve watched Billy follow the nurse until she turned a corner and disappeared, Billy following in tow. He scoffed at Billy's vulgarness, trying to ease the ball at the back of his throat, then rubbed his sweaty hands on his jeans. 

He entered the room and the sight that greeted him got the ball in his throat back, but for an entirely different reason. Dustin was lying on a bed, seems to be hooked up to a million different machines, with his mother on one side, and Max on the other, her head down and her shoulders shaking. And Dustin, to Steve's horror, looked like the life got sucked right out of him. Steve's stomach turned in a dangerous way. He flinched when the door closed behind him, and both Dustin's mom and Max turned to him. Once Max saw Steve, she got up and ran and for a second he thought she would leave the room, but instead, she headed for Steve and hugged him, knocking the breath out of him.

His arms were unresponsive on his side for a few beats before he then reciprocated Max's hug, and at that, she buried herself closer to him. The hug lasted for a few minutes before she let him go then walked back to her previous position, her head still down, then sat and folded her arms in front of her on the bed and rested her chin on it, and kept looking at her friend. It broke Steve's heart how sad she seemed, he was so used to her fierceness that now when she wasn't her usual self, it drove a shock to his system.

Steve walked over to Dustin's mom, dragging a chair behind him and sat on it.

Dustin's mom started 

"The doctors said he's out of the danger zone for now, but one wrong move and it could injure him badly. So they suggested that he stay here for a while before he can go back out. And after that, he's pretty much on house arrest for a few weeks until he's completely healed"

Steve nodded, listening but not really comprehending what was said to him, his eyes were stuck on Dustin's sleeping form and how ghostly his usually bright and excited face is. 

Steve looked down on his hands and couldn't help but remember his father, laying down on the same bed, and the doctors, they said everything was fine but he died a few days later of this lung failure.  

He pushed down the thoughts. Dustin was gonna be fine, it was only a few days and he would probably be begging his mom to get out of the hospital

He looked up at Max who was staring at him and smiled softly then said, 

"Do you wanna go back home?" She immediately shook her head 

"He won't wake up for few hours, go back home and freshen up, eat something and then you can come back. How about that?"

She glared at Steve with no heat, then got up and walked over to where Steve was standing and tugged at his sleeve like a child, and Steve felt his chest tighten because she was a child, a child living in a shitty house environment  and her friend laying motionless not 3 feet away from her .

He looked back at Dustin then bid goodbye to Ms. Henderson but got no response back.

When they got out of the room, they went to the reception desk expecting to find Billy, but he wasn't there. He asked the nurse if she saw him and then described him to her. She clucked her tongue and said 

"Same boy that's been flirting with the nurses? Caused a hell of a storm in the break room I'll tell ya that"

Steve huffed frustratedly then nodded 

"Saw him goin to the toilet, he's probably there"

Steve told max to wait for him, the headed for a washroom and opened the door to find Billy

but he wasn't alone 

He was kissing someone, but Billy's body was covering the person, and upon his very noisy entrance, they both broke the kiss and turned around which caused Billy to uncover the person 

and to Steve disbelief,

It was a Boy

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHATS UP CRUNCHY BOIS,  
> I dont know if you not noticed but uh *smirks* this chaper is extra long. IM REALLY THANKFUL FOR EVERY KUDOS YALL GIVE AND IM HONESTLY SO HAPPY SO I WANTED TO GIVE BACK BY MAKING A LONGER CHAPTER. GOD PLEASE DONT LET THIS FLOP LMAO CUZ AO3 ARE LITTLE BITCHES THAT UPDATE MY STORY A FUCKING DAY AFTER I RELEASE A CHAPTER THIS PISSES ME OFF YALL  
> But yall i have one note, pls comment bc i really like to know what u guys think about the chapters if they’re too long or too short or if i need to slow it down or hurry it up. Basically i want ur opinion  
> Anyways  
> I LOVE YALL  
> HAVE A GOOD DAY CRUNCHY BOIS

**Author's Note:**

> sup person who got this far, cheers to you for getting through this amount of bad writing. it means alot. really. and uh- i literally started this 'story' suddenly and my insomnia will not allow me to sleep, even if it kills me so i said why tf not uk???
> 
> anyways i hope you enjoyed this mess and if you can go ahead comment and kudos this bitch, please do so. that'll be the saving grace of all this. anyways, have a good day


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